The Joint Commission requires hospitals to reduce unnecessary alarms in an effort to address alarm fatigue. This literature review found that the proportion of clinically meaningful alarms in critical care settings was consistently low. However, few studies reliably differentiated between clinically irrelevant and inaccurate alarms, a necessary distinction for effective alarm reduction interventions.

Medical device alarm safety in hospitals is a National Patient Safety Goal. This survey study found marginal progress in clinical alarm safety between 2005 and 2011. According to respondents, frequent false alarms remain a significant problem.

This newspaper article reports on heart monitor use in the hospital and how it affects patient care.